Loose Cannon
07-11-2007, 12:21 AM
http://www.onlineworldofwrestling.com/pictures/r/rickmartel/14.jpg
If you were a fan of tag team wrestling in the 80's, the name Rick Martel should be no mystery to you. Part of some of the most clean cut, wishy washy tag teams ever produced, Martel was right in the middle of the great tag team boom of the 80's. Going from one extreme to the other, Martel shockingly became one of the top heels in the early 90's. He's a former World Champion, which most fans might be quick to forget. But one thing that fans will never forget about Rick Martel is that, Yes, He is a Model.
Rick Martel's beginning years in wrestling saw him floating around in different territories in the NWA, Canada and a couple others. He actually wrestled tag in the WWF before the big tag team boom, winning the Titles with then partner Tony Garea. Soon after, Martel would sign with the AWA and quickly see major success with the company.
Rick Martel wasn't with the company but about a year and a half when he won his first and only World Championship from one of the National Promotions. Now I was about 1 year old at this time and never saw any footage of his run, so my opinions are very limited. But from reading stories and hearing old school wrestlers and fans who lived and watched during that era, Rick Martel didn't really fit as World Champion. Just look at some champions during that era: Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Jerry Lawler, Harley Race, Rick Martel. hmmmm. Well Verne must of saw something special in him as he held th Title just shy of 20 months.
After he lost the belt, Martel would return to the WWF and enter what was the cornerstone of the WWF, the Tag Team Division. He first formed a team with Tom Zenk called the Can-Am Connection. Martel was from Canada, Zenk from America, yes, very cool name. They were pretty much your blueprint babyface team of the 80's. The team's run didn't last long however as Zenk would leave the WWF shortly after they formed. With his partner gone, Martel would find a new partner in a WWF Hall of Famer.
During a double team attack by the Islanders on Martel, Tito Santana ran in from the announch booth and saved him. The two would form a team and would be called Strike Force. Yet another cool name, but I don't know, did the name and the gimmick really fit here? Strike Force sounds like a name you would give some special forces unit of the army. Tito and Rick were two pretty boys, who made the girls go crazy when they took thier shirts off. They even had what will probably go down as the gayest theme song ever, "Girls in Cars." If you have never heard it, well congratulations. However, they were a great team non the less and worked very well together. They eventually captured the Tag Straps from the Harts. But success would be cut short by a road block called Demolition
The team would go on to lose the Titles to Demolition at WM 4, but that wasn't the worst thing to happen, as Rick Martel was badly injured during the match. Tito wretled singles for a while until Martel returned at WM 5 to team with Santana against the Brainbusters. In a shocking twist, a miscue by Santana led to Rick Martel walking out on his partner. Backstage, Rick Martel went on a tirade on his former partner. Who would of thought that pretty boy Rick Martel was a huge dick after all?
After years of being a cookie cutter babyface, Martel did a complete 180 and transformed into a cocky, arrogant, self loathing asshole called The Model. Was he perfect for the gimmick or what? Tell me you didn't believe the guy had a modeling job on the side? The new slick look, the dreamy entrance music, the smug facial expressions, the full tan, the arrogance spray, and yes, the oversized "Yes I am a Model" button all helped Martel play the character to a tilt. Spraying his opponets with the Arrogance was a classic heel tactic.
Martel had a long feud with Tito, which seemed to never end, even after thier feud was over. He had a memorable feud with Jake Roberts, which led to a Blind fold match at Mania, fhe aught HBK in a rare heel/heel match at Summerslam and finally feuded with Tatanka in his last big feud. I remember him having a chance to win the IC Belt against Razor, but came up a bit short. Some other memorable moments included his whole team surviving the Survivor Series of 1990 and lasting around 50+ minutes in the Royal Rumble. Unfortunately, Martel never again achieved this kind of success after the WWF.
Injuries would begin to plague the career of Rick Martel soon after he went to WCW. He feuded with Booker T for a little while and actually beat him for the WCW TV Championship, but suffered a horrible injury soon after. He would come back soon after and I only seem to remember Perry Saturn throwing him though a glass window. LOL. Sadly, this is my last memory of him inside of wrestling.
Looking back at the career of Rick Martel, I'd say he had a pretty good run. He can go ahead and write himself off as a former World Champion and will go down as one of the great tag wrestlers. His heel run was brilliant and had it not been for Perfect, I think The Model would of been an IC Champ. Sadly, the injury bug caught him later on and cut his career short. But I think we can all agree, there was and will always be one model in wrestling and that's Rick Martel.
http://www.tpww.net/forums/showthread.php?t=65432: British Bulldog
http://www.tpww.net/forums/showthread.php?t=65506: Earthquake
http://www.tpww.net/forums/showthread.php?t=65608: Lex Luger
If you were a fan of tag team wrestling in the 80's, the name Rick Martel should be no mystery to you. Part of some of the most clean cut, wishy washy tag teams ever produced, Martel was right in the middle of the great tag team boom of the 80's. Going from one extreme to the other, Martel shockingly became one of the top heels in the early 90's. He's a former World Champion, which most fans might be quick to forget. But one thing that fans will never forget about Rick Martel is that, Yes, He is a Model.
Rick Martel's beginning years in wrestling saw him floating around in different territories in the NWA, Canada and a couple others. He actually wrestled tag in the WWF before the big tag team boom, winning the Titles with then partner Tony Garea. Soon after, Martel would sign with the AWA and quickly see major success with the company.
Rick Martel wasn't with the company but about a year and a half when he won his first and only World Championship from one of the National Promotions. Now I was about 1 year old at this time and never saw any footage of his run, so my opinions are very limited. But from reading stories and hearing old school wrestlers and fans who lived and watched during that era, Rick Martel didn't really fit as World Champion. Just look at some champions during that era: Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Jerry Lawler, Harley Race, Rick Martel. hmmmm. Well Verne must of saw something special in him as he held th Title just shy of 20 months.
After he lost the belt, Martel would return to the WWF and enter what was the cornerstone of the WWF, the Tag Team Division. He first formed a team with Tom Zenk called the Can-Am Connection. Martel was from Canada, Zenk from America, yes, very cool name. They were pretty much your blueprint babyface team of the 80's. The team's run didn't last long however as Zenk would leave the WWF shortly after they formed. With his partner gone, Martel would find a new partner in a WWF Hall of Famer.
During a double team attack by the Islanders on Martel, Tito Santana ran in from the announch booth and saved him. The two would form a team and would be called Strike Force. Yet another cool name, but I don't know, did the name and the gimmick really fit here? Strike Force sounds like a name you would give some special forces unit of the army. Tito and Rick were two pretty boys, who made the girls go crazy when they took thier shirts off. They even had what will probably go down as the gayest theme song ever, "Girls in Cars." If you have never heard it, well congratulations. However, they were a great team non the less and worked very well together. They eventually captured the Tag Straps from the Harts. But success would be cut short by a road block called Demolition
The team would go on to lose the Titles to Demolition at WM 4, but that wasn't the worst thing to happen, as Rick Martel was badly injured during the match. Tito wretled singles for a while until Martel returned at WM 5 to team with Santana against the Brainbusters. In a shocking twist, a miscue by Santana led to Rick Martel walking out on his partner. Backstage, Rick Martel went on a tirade on his former partner. Who would of thought that pretty boy Rick Martel was a huge dick after all?
After years of being a cookie cutter babyface, Martel did a complete 180 and transformed into a cocky, arrogant, self loathing asshole called The Model. Was he perfect for the gimmick or what? Tell me you didn't believe the guy had a modeling job on the side? The new slick look, the dreamy entrance music, the smug facial expressions, the full tan, the arrogance spray, and yes, the oversized "Yes I am a Model" button all helped Martel play the character to a tilt. Spraying his opponets with the Arrogance was a classic heel tactic.
Martel had a long feud with Tito, which seemed to never end, even after thier feud was over. He had a memorable feud with Jake Roberts, which led to a Blind fold match at Mania, fhe aught HBK in a rare heel/heel match at Summerslam and finally feuded with Tatanka in his last big feud. I remember him having a chance to win the IC Belt against Razor, but came up a bit short. Some other memorable moments included his whole team surviving the Survivor Series of 1990 and lasting around 50+ minutes in the Royal Rumble. Unfortunately, Martel never again achieved this kind of success after the WWF.
Injuries would begin to plague the career of Rick Martel soon after he went to WCW. He feuded with Booker T for a little while and actually beat him for the WCW TV Championship, but suffered a horrible injury soon after. He would come back soon after and I only seem to remember Perry Saturn throwing him though a glass window. LOL. Sadly, this is my last memory of him inside of wrestling.
Looking back at the career of Rick Martel, I'd say he had a pretty good run. He can go ahead and write himself off as a former World Champion and will go down as one of the great tag wrestlers. His heel run was brilliant and had it not been for Perfect, I think The Model would of been an IC Champ. Sadly, the injury bug caught him later on and cut his career short. But I think we can all agree, there was and will always be one model in wrestling and that's Rick Martel.
http://www.tpww.net/forums/showthread.php?t=65432: British Bulldog
http://www.tpww.net/forums/showthread.php?t=65506: Earthquake
http://www.tpww.net/forums/showthread.php?t=65608: Lex Luger